


From Darkness Enveloped

by Cherisher



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Drabble, Ladynoir July, Message, One Shot, Thief AU, blackout - Freeform, miraculous - Freeform, miraculousblackout, no relationship sorry, very important
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-22 09:14:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11377137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cherisher/pseuds/Cherisher
Summary: Chloe has her share of Cat Burglary





	From Darkness Enveloped

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to La Luna Unita for the Thief AU Idea

A small and nimble blade swiftly passed over the surface of the large window pane. The journey of the cutter carved its way around a large hand-held suction cup and back around to the origin; the shape; roughly the size of a teenage girl. From on top of the Bourgeois' mansion, a chilly Parisian breeze whispered through the freshly made opening and crept along the spine of the black-cladded figure. Once the window was removed, the masked burglar crept through the slanted hole of the skylight. Bracing their fall, all but a light thump could be heard in the still and empty establishment. Night time meant sleeping for most.

Expertly determining their own footfalls upon the carpeted hallways they made their way to the predetermined point of attack; the Mayor's study auditorium. Many items of the mansion did not pique the interest of the experienced thief. Rather, they bored her. She had visited these halls too many times within her life. Living in the house you're stealing from would, granted, be an excellent inside operation, however it tracked away from the inviting desire to steal someone else's valuable item. Chloe pushed the nagging thoughts to the back of her head and pulled from her pocket a worn down lock pick.

Chloe Bourgeois felt the all too familiar click of her father's home office door-lock from through her grasp of the handle. A spill of moonlight flooded one-half of the room as the door creaked open. She could see the objective, it was mere metres opposite from the doorway. A large painting of the Mayor hung brilliantly upon the wall, the masterpiece of a collaboration between Paris' finest artisans. _"A gift to the Mayor's Home"_ they called it. They didn't even ask for any money, yet people shouted their praises from the rooftops.

From memory, Chloe remembered the layout of the room. Unless she triggered the door's patented _"Welcome-Mat-Sensor"_ , the job should run smoothly. She took a grand leap over the threshold and landed within the middle-ground between her and the painting.

The window shutters were closed, causing an enveloping darkness for the rest of the room. Chloe knew she wasn't alone in that study.

Waiting inside that darkness was Chat Noir and Ladybug. Chat Noir sat behind the Mayor's desk while Ladybug stood beside him, her yo-yo drawn and ready to use. 

Chloe turned to face the darkness, knowing full well she couldn't see the Parisian heroes. "Last time I checked, you don't live in this house," Chloe said into the void. She pulled down the mask and unveiled her face in the light from the door. "Are you here to steal from my family's home? Or am I the only one?"

"Last time I checked," Chat Noir clasped his hands and leant his elbows on the desk, "stealing from anyone, is still stealing. And stealing is a crime."

Chloe scrunched her face in disgust. She slowly lifted her hand and pointed at the portrait, "That piece belongs to this house, and therefore to me. I can do what I want with it. I see dozens of people come in this room and gaze aimlessly at the same painting. It becomes pointless after so many times."

"And your point being?" Ladybug said stiffening her grip around the yo-yo.

"It just sits there!" Chloe hushedly whispered through gritted teeth. "People look at it for free!"

"That's the whole point of voluntary artwork." Chat Noir slowly pushed away from the desk and stood up. "You claim to own the masterpiece, yet, was it you who tirelessly worked hours upon hours on the fine details? Did you spend any amount of effort in procuring this piece from the nothingness of a blank canvas? Did you ask for nothing in return?"

Chloe took a step back. "No, of course not!"

"Then who?" Ladybug said taking a step forward.

Chloe now frantically looked around the room. The voices she was talking to seemed to scatter in the darkness, moving about in the shadows.

"Who did these feats?"

"Who are these true owners?"

"Who made the piece?"

"The artists," Chat Noir answered firmly. Chloe stopped her spinning mind and turned her head towards the portrait. Both heroes stood side by side the painting, guarding it like sentinels. Chat Noir raised a hand and tapped the plaque beneath the painting with his knuckle. "You know, the names of the people inscribed on this plaque, are all humans who care for this piece's safety."

"Who cares about the artists!? They're all mindless machines who pump out beautiful pieces, they expect nothing in return."

"You praise their work?" Ladybug said gesturing to the portrait. "You acknowledge their ownership?"

"It was given to me!" Chloe stomped her foot.

"Out of the _self-sacrifice_ and _kindness_ of others."  
Both ladybug and Chat Noir merely glared at Chloe when those words hit her. Ladybug continued the verbal beat down.

"They made something beautiful. Yes, it was made for you, and you have been able to appreciate it with everyone who has seen it. But you can never claim it as your own."

" _That_ is worst kind of stealing," Chat Noir used as the final blow.

Chloe fell to her knees, apologies spilled from her trembling mouth as tears dripped down her cheeks.

Chat Noir and Ladybug slowly walked over to her, and they knelt down beside her. And they enveloped her with a hug.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is for the Miraculous Blackout event happening within the fandom.  
> If you repost artwork, It is stealing. If you take other's artwork and call it your own, It is stealing.  
> If you intentionally copy and paste someone else's fan fiction and entitled yourself the Author, That is stealing.  
> Please, this blackout is for your own good.


End file.
